CFA originally stood for Colonies françaises d'Afrique ("French colonies of Africa"); following the independence of these states, its name was changed to Coopération financière en Afrique centrale ("Financial Cooperation in Central Africa"). The currency is issued by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC; Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale), located in Yaoundé, Cameroon, for the members of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC; Communauté Économique et Monétaire de l'Afrique Centrale). The franc is nominally subdivided into 100 centimes but no centime denominations have been issued. The production of CFA franc notes has been carried out at Chamalières by the Bank of France since its creation in 1945.
In several west African states, the West African CFA franc, which is of equal value to the Central African CFA franc, is in circulation.
The currency remained in use when these colonies gained their independence. Equatorial Guinea, the only former Spanish colony in the zone, adopted the CFA franc in 1984, replacing the Equatorial Guinean ekwele at a rate of 1 franc = 4 bipkwele.[citation needed]
The currency was pegged to the French franc (F) at F.CFA1 = 2 French francs from 1948, becoming F.CFA1 = NF0.02 after introduction of the new franc at 1 new franc = 100 old francs. In 1994 the currency was devalued by half to F.CFA1 = F0.01. From 1999 it has since been pegged to the euro at €1 = F6.55957 = F.CFA655.957.
On April 25, 2023, the ministerial meeting of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (Cemac) and France is held. In particular, the subject of the CFA franc was discussed. On the French side, the guarantee provided to the CFA franc, and the assurance of its convertibility, is perceived as a vector of economic stability for the region. France remains “open” and “available” to move forward on a reform of monetary cooperation in Central Africa, such as it has been able to take place in West Africa. France says it is ready to receive CEMAC's proposals..
Criticism
According to the BBC, "critics, such as those leading the anti-CFA movement, say true economic development for the 14 African countries can only be achieved if they get rid of the currency. They argue that in exchange for the guarantees provided by the French treasury, African countries channel more money to France than they receive in aid. They also argue that they have no say in deciding key monetary policies agreed to by European countries, which are members of the Eurozone."[3]
Coins
In 1948, coins were issued for use in all the colonies (not including French Cameroun) in denominations of 1 and 2 francs. This was the last issue of a 2 franc coin for nearly 50 years. In 1958, 5, 10, and 25 franc coins were added, which were also used in French Cameroun. These bore the name Cameroun in addition to États de l'Afrique Equatoriale. In 1961, nickel 50 franc coins were introduced, followed by nickel 100 franc pieces in 1966.
From 1971, the 100 franc coins were issued for each of the individual member states, depicting the state name in which they were issued. 50 franc coins were also issued in this manner between 1976 and 1996, after being reduced in size. However instead of depicting the state name each was given an identification letter on the top reverse. 50 franc coins with the letter "A" were issued for Chad, "B" for Central African Republic, "C" for Congo, "D" for Gabon, and "E" for Cameroon. In 1976, cupro-nickel 500 franc coins were introduced. From 1985, these were also issued by the individual states. That year also saw the introduction of 5, 25, 50 and 100 franc coins for use in Equatorial Guinea, which had recently joined the monetary union, depicting all titles and information in Spanish instead of the usual French, most notably the denomination as "franco" instead of "franc". Despite titular differences in some of the coinage, all were legal and exchangeable tender in all member nations.
In 1996, centralized production of the 100 franc coin was resumed, with a single 500 franc coin reintroduced in 1998. Despite dropping state names and code letters, the overall design of the coins remained relatively unchanged.
2006 saw a redesign of all denominations of coins for the CFA franc, along with the introduction of a 2 franc piece. The 1, 5, 10, and 25 franc coins were reduced in size, while a new bi-metallic 100 franc coin was introduced, along with a new and reduced size 500 franc coin with heightened security features, including laser marking. All newer coins depict the acronym "CEMAC" for "Communauté Économique et Monétaire de l'Afrique Centrale". Older sized coins continue to remain legal tender alongside the newly configured coins.
All CFA coins depict both a mint mark, along with an engraver's privy mark. The mint mark is located on the reverse on the left side of the denomination while the engraver's mark is located on the right.
Lettered (5 sets of 15 reeds and the non-aligned acronym "CEMAC" (Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa) repeated 8 times alternatively up and down)
Numeral "500"; legend "BANQUE DES ÉTATS DE L'AFRIQUE CENTRALE" and "500 FCFA"
Denomination above agricultural products (two shrubs of cacao and cassava); legend "CEMAC"
2006
Banknotes
When the CFA franc was introduced, notes issued by the Caisse Centrale de la France d'Outre-Mer ("Central Cashier of Overseas France") in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 100, and 1,000 francs were in circulation. In 1947, a new series of notes was introduced for use in French Equatorial Africa, although the notes did not bear the name of the colonies. Notes were issued in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, and 1,000 francs, followed by those of 500 francs in 1949, and 5,000 francs in 1952. In 1957, the Institut d'Émission de l'Afrique Équatoriale Française et du Cameroun took over paper money production, issuing all of the earlier denominations except for the 500 -franc bill.[citation needed]
In 1961, the Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique Équatoriale et du Cameroun took over banknote production, with notes below 100 francs ceasing to be issued. The name of the bank changed to Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique Équatoriale in 1963. 10,000 franc notes were introduced in 1968, whilst the 10 franc notes were replaced by coins in 1971.[citation needed]
In 1975, the bank name changed again to the Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale and the individual states began issuing notes in their own names, in denominations of 500, 1,000, 5,000 and 10,000 francs. This practice ended in 1993. Since then, the banknotes have been issued with only a letter prominently displayed to distinguish between the issues of the different states. 2,000 franc notes were introduced in 1993. The country letter codes are as follows:
The primary colours are gray, yellow, blue, green, and orange. The central theme of this note is modern agriculture. Security features include a solid security thread with CEMAC, a watermark (three eland antelope heads), and electrotype 500
A (Gabon); C (Chad); F (Equatorial Guinea); M (Central African Republic); T (Republic of the Congo); U (Cameroon)
The main colours are blue, yellow, red, green, and brown. The main theme of this note is health care. Security features include a solid security thread with CEMAC, a watermark (three eland antelope heads), and electrotype 1000.
A (Gabon); C (Chad); F (Equatorial Guinea); M (Central African Republic); T (Republic of the Congo); U (Cameroon)
Red, yellow, green, and gray are the main colours in this note. The theme of this note is environmental protection and fauna. Security features include Silkscreen OVI® green-to-blue stars, a Dualtrack™ color-changing windowed security thread with demetalized BEAC 2000, a watermark (three eland antelope heads), and electrotype 2000.
A (Gabon); C (Chad); F (Equatorial Guinea); M (Central African Republic); T (Republic of the Congo); U (Cameroon)
The colour scheme here is green, yellow, red, brown, and gray. The primary theme on the back side is environmental protection and fauna. Security features include SPARK Live® gold-to-green with Truspin® effect stars; a RAPID® windowed security thread with BEAC 5000; a watermark (three eland antelope heads); and electrotype 5000.
A (Gabon); C (Chad); F (Equatorial Guinea); M (Central African Republic); T (Republic of the Congo); U (Cameroon)
Purple, yellow, red, green, and orange are the main colours. The main theme on the back side is education. Security features include SPARK Live® magenta-to-green with Truspin® effect stars, a RAPID® windowed security thread with BEAC 10000, a watermark (three eland antelope heads), and electrotype 10000.
A (Gabon); C (Chad); F (Equatorial Guinea); M (Central African Republic); T (Republic of the Congo); U (Cameroon)
The CFA franc is the name of two currencies, the West African CFA franc, used in eight West African countries, and the Central African CFA franc, used in six Central African countries. Although separate, the two CFA franc currencies have always been at parity and are effectively interchangeable. The ISO currency codes are XAF for the Central African CFA franc and XOF for the West African CFA franc. On 22 December 2019, it was announced that the West African currency would be reformed and replaced by an independent currency to be called Eco.
The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription francorum rex used on early French coins and until the 18th century, or from the French franc, meaning "frank".
French Equatorial Africa was a federation of French colonial territories in Equatorial Africa which consisted of Gabon, French Congo, Ubangi-Shari, and Chad. It existed from 1910 to 1958 and its administration was based in Brazzaville.
The ouguiya, at one time spelled "ougiya", is the currency of Mauritania. Each ouguiya constitutes five khoums. As such it is one of two circulating currencies, along with the Malagasy ariary, whose division units are not based on a power of ten.
Adolphe Sylvestre Félix Éboué was a French colonial administrator and Free French leader. He was the first black French man appointed to a high post in the French colonies, when appointed as Governor of Guadeloupe in 1936.
The Congolese franc is the currency of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is subdivided into 100 centimes. However, centimes no longer have a practical value and are no longer used. In April 2022, 2,000 francs was equivalent to US$1.
The Guinean franc is the currency of Guinea. It is subdivided into one hundred centimes, but no centime denominations were ever issued.
The franc is the official currency of Comoros. It is nominally subdivided into 100 centimes, although no centime denominations have ever been issued.
The Banque de l'Afrique Occidentale was a French bank established in 1901 to issue currency for the colonies of French West Africa.
The ekwele or ekuele was the currency of Equatorial Guinea between 1975 and 1985. Although nominally divided into 100 céntimos, no subdivisions were issued. The name ekuele was used until 1979, whilst ekwele was used after. The renaming of the currency to "ekwele" from "peseta" was motivated largely by a sweeping Africanization program meant to rid the country of its colonial past by removing Spanish names and references from the public domain; the ekpele was a pre-colonial iron currency used by the Fang and Beti people.
The Malian franc was the independent currency of Mali between 1962 and 1984. Although technically subdivided into 100 centimes, no subdivisions were issued.
The Economic Community of Central African States is an Economic Community of the African Union for promotion of regional economic co-operation in Central Africa. It "aims to achieve collective autonomy, raise the standard of living of its populations and maintain economic stability through harmonious cooperation".
The West African CFA franc is the currency used by eight independent states in West Africa which make up the West African Economic and Monetary Union : Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. These eight countries had a combined population of 105.7 million people in 2014, and a combined GDP of US$128.6 billion as of 2018.
The Douala Stock Exchange was the official market for securities in Cameroon, located in Douala. In 2019 it was absorbed by the Central African Securities Exchange which on that occasion relocated from Libreville to Douala.
The Bank of Central African States is a central bank that serves six central African countries which form the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo.
The Central Bank of West African States is a central bank serving the eight west African countries which share the common West African CFA franc currency and comprise the West African Economic and Monetary Union.
The franc was the currency of French Cameroun. It was subdivided into 100 centimes and was equal in value to the French franc.
The franc was the currency of French Equatorial Africa. The French franc circulated, together with distinct banknotes from 1917 and coins from 1942. It was replaced by the CFA franc in 1945.
The Central African Financial Market Supervisory Commission is a supranational markets regulator established in 2019 and based in Libreville, Gabon. It is the single securities authority for the six countries of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa, namely Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo.
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Cameroon 
Central African Republic 
Chad 
Equatorial Guinea 
Gabon 
Republic of the Congo 
